I was reminded yesterday of a dream I had a while back.  I was walking in this huge yawning hallway, reminiscent of a cathedral but empty.  The walls were made of stone and they stretched up to reach the arched ceiling that seemed to be a mile high.  As I walked down this hall, I came to a place in the floor that was open and as I looked down into the opening, I could see water flowing underneath the floor.  The water was clear and I could see smooth round pebbles on the bottom.  As I looked up, there was a gentleman standing there and when I asked where this water came from, he responded, “this is part of the Jordan river.  It flows under this church, you know.  See, look outside.”  As I turned and peered out of one of the tall windows in stone wall, I could see the Jordan sparkling in the sun.  I ran outside of the church and stopped at the bank of the river.  For a moment I just gazed at the water, and then I walked in.  I swam out towards the middle and just floated in the water.  And then suddenly it hit me, I’m swimming in the same water Jesus was baptized in.  And I began weeping at this realization.  I was where Christ had been…in the same water…and I could feel His presence there so strongly.  And so I just floated there in the water with Him.  And it was so peaceful. 

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve wished to have that same dream again.  In this busy crazy world, with all the noise and all the hurry, it’s so hard to find that quiet moment with our precious Lord to just…be.  So imagine my surprise when I heard my Father’s voice above the noise of the TV blaring and my two sons having Wrestlemania 95 in the den and the phone ringing and the Blackberry dinging…

The Jordan is more than just a place of peace…it’s a place of transition.  

Um, what?

Transition.  And transition brings waiting.  Wait with Me?

Wait for what, God?

Shhhh…just float.

It took me a little time to process that.  Thankfully, my amazing husband took my sweet boys to dinner to give me a little quiet time to think…and type of course.  After leaving Egypt and then wandering around in the wilderness, the Israelites finally crossed the Jordan into the land God promised (Joshua 3).  And of course, Jesus was baptized in the Jordan and was immediately led by the Spirit into the wilderness after which He began His ministry (Mark 1:9-13).  Elijah and Elisha crossed over the Jordan just before Elijah was taken into heaven and Elisha crossed back over the Jordan and took on the cloak of Elijah and became his successor (2 Kings 2).  So yes then…it does seem that the Jordan is about transition.  But I’m not so excited about the waiting part.  I’m all for transitions, God.  Um, I mean as long as they end up somewhere good.  Ahem.  But I’m not a good wait-er.  I was then reminded of one of my favorite verses:

But those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength;

They shall mount up with wings like eagles,

They shall run and not be weary,

They shall walk and not faint.

Isaiah 40:31

 

Sometimes God has us in places of transition and with these transitions, there must be a time of waiting.  But that waiting isn’t ever wasted.  It isn’t God withholding anything from us.  It’s a time of preparation.  A time for us to renew our strength, to draw near to our Beloved, to sometimes just, well…float.  We aren’t just waiting ON the Lord, we are waiting WITH Him.  His presence is there in the blue-green water, swirling around us.  Spirit and Truth, refreshing us as we swim in His grace.  And as you float with the Ancient of Days in the cool waters of the Jordan, you can know with a peace that passes all understanding that He has a plan for you, a transition that will come…but for now, He may just want to wait with you.  So, shhh…just float.